Egyptian gas supply to Jordan officially resumed

Kingdom receiving half of its natural gas needs daily as per agreement

AMMAN — Jordan has officially started receiving half of its daily needs of natural gas for electricity generation from Egypt, a government official said on Sunday.

The Kingdom, which started receiving experimental quantities from Egypt in August last year, is currently receiving from Egypt some 165 million cubic feet of natural gas per day, which covers half of Jordan’s daily need for electricity production.

“The resumption of Egyptian gas supply to Jordan is very good news for the country’s economy. It will help boost the various economic sectors and reduce the overall energy bill,” the official told The Jordan Times on Sunday.

The official said Egypt will continue the current supply of natural gas throughout 2019, as stipulated by an agreement signed between the two countries earlier this month.

Commenting on the resumption of gas supply, economist Wajdi Makhamreh said: “This is an important development and should reflect positively on all sectors.”

“The resumption of gas supplies from Egypt should lead to a decline in the electricity bill for individuals… This will also help increase the competitiveness of the Jordanian industries as it will help reduce the energy costs for them,” Makhamreh told The Jordan Times on Sunday.

“Rising energy costs is one of key challenges industries and businesses in Jordan face, and the resumed supply of gas is likely to help reduce the burden,” he said.

Egypt provided Jordan with 250 million cubic feet of natural gas daily since 2004, until these amounts started decreasing at the end of 2009 and were completely halted in 2011 after some 25 sabotage attacks on the Arab Gas Pipeline.

Such conditions resulted in cumulative losses for the government-owned National Electric Power Company of around JD5 billion, according to ministry figures. The Kingdom’s daily needs of natural gas for electricity generation stand at 330 million cubic feet.